Being Open to Good Advice Takes Effort

Being Open to Good Advice Takes Effort

It's easy enough to get sidetracked from what we're reading or hearing. The culprits are legion. The mind drifts. A random memory or sudden realization hijacks our attention.

That's why we need to be especially attentive when good advice is being offered. It's tough to take advice without having a pretty good idea of what that advice actually is and how it applies to us in our particular circumstances.
  
But even when we manage to keep laser-like focus on the advice itself and listen or read attentively, there is often some phrase, some image, some analogy or argument presented in support of the advice that throws us for a loop. This is especially true for intellectuals and people who consider themselves to be capable thinkers and analysts of arguments. For them, the curiosity and enthusiasm generated by identifying a flaw in reasoning can easily serve as a pretext for rejecting or neglecting the underlying advice. 

For example, blogger Richard Campbell (Riccampbell.com) recently wrote about how memory affects attitude. He advised his readers that "when you recall bad memories, change the details of the incident so the memory no longer gives you bad feelings." (The Reader, p.14, 2-5-2015). My first thought when reading this was, "What?! If people took this advice, prosecutors and plaintiff's attorneys around the world would have the worst time getting a truthful answer from a witness!" I then began to think about how this advice could be abused, especially by those eager to escape liability or obtain forgiveness. 

Lucky for me I was able to catch myself in this act of over-intellectualizing and recovered my attentive attitude in time to realize that this advice is in fact good. It was at this point that I began thinking through how I might integrate this advice into my life.  

In the rush to congratulate ourselves for catching and critiquing a flaw in the presentation of some bit of advice, we risk ignoring the basic message of the advice itself, and we risk neglecting the essential work of thinking how the advice applies to ourselves. Taking advice takes effort. Even a few extra seconds of focused, positive contemplation can mean all the difference in the world.